Wire-stretcher.



P. 'A'.' BERRY. WIRE STRBTCHER. APPLICATION FILED D30. 20, 1910.

1,041,727, Patented km. 22, 1912.

I ATTORNEY PHIL IP annnnson BERRY, or ooarroma, TEXAS.

WIRESTRETCHEB.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 22,1912.

Application filed December 20, 1910. Serial No. 598,428.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PHILLIP ANDERSON BERRY, citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Co-ahoma, in the county of Howard and State ofTexas, have invented cert-ainnew and useful Improvements in Wire-Stretchers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has particular relation to wire stretchers of the levertype.

The object of the invention is to provide a wire stretcher comprising ahandle bar at the end of which an ofl-set yoke is provided andparticularly the provision of a rigid fulcrum arm extending laterallyfrom the yoke and a central spur at the end of the yoke disposed in afork formed by hook,

arms. 1

Finally the object of the invention is to provide means of the characterdescribed that will be strong, durable, efficient, and easy ofoperation, simple and comparatively inexpensive to construct, and alsoin which the several parts will not be likely to get out of workingorder.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention has relation tocertain novel features of construct-ion and operation, an example ofwhich is described in this specification and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1. is an elevation of the stretcher, Fig. 2, is a plan viewshowing the stretcher in position before stretching the wire, Fig. 3. isa similar view showing the parts after the wire is stretched, Fig. 4. isan elevation showing the stretcher in position for a sec-' ond stretch,and Fig. 5. is a detail of the wire claw.

In the drawings the numeral 1 designates an elongated handle or leverbar having at one end a curved yoke member 2. This member is disposedpractically entirely on one side of the bar, and has a deep curvedportion 3, so that at the intersection of the bar and said portion asharper fulcrum point or edge 4 is produced.

About midway of the yoke a fulcrum arm 5 projecting laterally therefrom,is provided. This arm is formed rigid on the yoke and may be slightlycurved. At its free end the arm has a hook 6 adapted to engage the wire.The yoke terminates in a spur 7 on each side of which a curved arm 8terminating in a hook 9 is provided. The

arms 8 are rigid on the yoke and form a fork at the end thereof.

On the bar 1 near the yoke a wire receiving claw 10 is pivoted. Thisclaw is loose on a bolt 11 passing through the bar and held by a nut 12,a washer 13 being interposed between the claw and the bar. The claw mustbe free to turn or rotate on either side of the bar. Near the end of thebar opposite to'that carrying the claw, a hook 14: is pivotallyattached.

In using the wire stretcher it is first placed in the position shown inFig. 2 and the wire to be stretched is engaged in the claw 10. Thestretcher is swung around the postto the position shown in Fig. 3, thefulcrum edge 4 coming into use during the latter part of the stroke.After the stroke is completed the hook 6 of the arm 5 is engaged overthe wire and the latter is thus held in position for stapling.Ordinarily this operation will stretch the wire to the desired degreeand take up the slack. However should further stretching of the wire benecessary the stretcher is tilted downwardly until the arm 5 can engagethe post, as shown in Fig. 4. The arm 5 then serves as a fulcrum and thelever is swung into a horizontal posit-ion. One of the hooks 9 is thenadapted to engage the wire and hold the same for stapling if so desired.A still further stretching of the wire can be accomplished by tiltingthe stretcher until the spur 7 engages the post with the fork formed bythe arms 8 embracing the post. The lever is then swung into a horizontalposition to stretch the wire and the hook 14L engaged over an adjacentwire if one is already in position so that the wire may be stapled,otherwise the stretcher is held by the operator while stapling.

It will be noted that as the bar 1 is swung in the various operationsthe claw 10 rotates and is thus always in line with the wire. Aspreviously mentioned the claw is removable and may be placed on eitherside of the bar. If one wire has not been stretched and fastened theoperator may not be able to hold the stretcher when the fork is used asa fulcrum as described at the end of the pre ceding paragraph. In suchcase the wire is disengaged from the claw and then engaged at a pointnearer its fastened end after which the operations described inconnection with Figs. 2, 3 and 4 may be used.

What I claim is:

1. In a wire stretcher, a bar, a curved yoke connected therewith andextending in the same plane, a fulcrum formed by the intersection of thebar and curved yoke,

, a fork upon the end of said curved yoke,

hooks upon the extremities of said fork, a spur in the center of saidfork, an arm provided with a hook formed upon the yoke intermediate ofits ends, and a wire engaging claw pivotally mounted upon said bar.

2. In a Wire stretcher, a bar, a curved yoke integral therewith andextending in the same plane, a fulcrum edge at the junction of said barand yoke, said yoke being provided with a fork having hooks upon itsextremities and further provided with a spur disposed centrally withinthe fork, a rigid fulcrum arm provided with a hook upon its extremityextending laterally from said yoke intermediate of its ends, a hookrigidly connected wlth said bar mterme- .diate of its ends and a clawpivoted upon PHILLIP ANDERSON BERRY.

Witnesses:

L. E. KI ARD, J. L. JOHNSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. V

